The Prodigal's Welcome

by Billerbeck, Kristin; Darty, Peggy;

  Elizabeth gasped. “Oh Grace. If you’re right, it would have been a terrible thing for me not to interpret his message. But remember the other thing. Fred wanted Jonathan to let us know…what had happened to him.”

  “Yes, but Jonathan also said he kept mentioning the church. Don’t you remember? We thought he meant go to any church, or perhaps to the church down the road. But he meant for us to go back to New Bethany Church to look for the treasure under the apple tree. Oh Mother, it all makes sense now.”

  Elizabeth nodded and looked at the inscriptions again. “Freddy used to dress up and pretend he was an explorer when he was a little boy. He always had your father send him notes about buried treasure—”

  “You see, that’s it! I believe with all of my heart Father was sending a message to us. And I intend to go to New Bethany Church and find that treasure, just as he intended us to.”

  “But a treasure?” her mother asked, reading the verse again.

  “I don’t know what’s buried there, Mother, but if it was important enough for Father to get the message to us, I owe it to him—and to us—to see what he left there.”

  She looked down the lane and saw Jonathan walking back toward the house.

  “What are you going to do, Grace?” Her mother stood up, looking anxious for the first time.

  Grace laced her fingers together, pressing against her palms, and considered the choices she had, which were indeed limited. Her eyes followed the slow easy gait of the man who had come on a mission from her father, a mission that could change their lives.

  “If Father trusted Jonathan Parker, then I think we have every right to believe he thought we could trust him as well.” As Jonathan grew closer, she whispered her decision to her mother. “I’m going to ask Jonathan to go with me to Sand Mountain. If I’m right and Father hid any kind of treasure there, then I’ll offer to share it with Jonathan in return for his help.”

  A frown worked its way over her mother’s forehead. “Grace, we can’t be sure about this. And I don’t want to risk losing you.” She reached out, gripping her hand and looking at her with pleading eyes.

  “You aren’t going to lose me, Mother,” Grace said, hugging her mother and feeling her ribs beneath her fingertips. Her mother had lost more weight. In her father’s absence, Grace knew she had to be strong for both of them.

  She placed her hands on her mother’s shoulders and leaned back to look into her kind hazel eyes. “Your faith has kept you strong and courageous; this morning, I decided that it’s time for me to start acting more like you. Please forgive me for doubting your faith,” she said, watching the sheen of tears appear in her mother’s eyes.

  “I love you, Grace,” her mother said, looking frail and vulnerable again.

  “And I love you. And we’re going to be all right, Mother. We will get through these hard times, and we’ll be strong again.”

  “Grace, you’ve always been strong. Just like Fred.”

  They were smiling through their tears as Jonathan reached the porch. Looking from one to the other, his face registered surprise.

  “Is everything okay?” he asked.

  “Everything is just fine,” Grace said, smiling at him.

  “That’s good. Well, I have the gate repaired,” he said, looking very pleased about it.

  “Thank you so much,” Grace said. Her heart was beating faster as she watched him climb the steps and settle into the chair beside her. He had changed into work clothes, and in the faded blue shirt, he was just as handsome as he had been in his nice suit.

  “Reams is going to ride over to visit his cousins this afternoon. You remember he mentioned they need work. Maybe he can talk them into coming here and between you and Mr. Douglas, you can come to some kind of agreement with them.”

  “Thank you.” Grace looked at him, wondering for one last time if it were safe to trust him. She was certain that God had sent him to them; after all, he had been the one to bring the Bible with the important message. In her heart, she knew that it was safe to trust this man.

  “Come inside,” she said to Jonathan, glancing at her mother. “We need to discuss something with you.”

  Jonathan took a look at her and hesitated. “You sound very serious.”

  “Yes, please come in so we can talk,” she said, automatically glancing around her. She was constantly looking over her shoulder, even though with Jonathan at their side, she felt more safe than she had since the war began.

  Once they were in the dining room, seated at the table drinking coffee, Grace opened her father’s Bible to Psalm 23. She handed the Bible to Jonathan.

  “Read these verses, and notice what my father has marked. Then tell me what you think.”

  Elizabeth had entered the dining room and sat at the end of the table, watching Jonathan as he read the verses.

  Grace watched his eyebrows lift. He stopped reading for a moment and looked at her but said nothing. Then he began reading again. When he had finished, he shook his head.

  “In a way, this is pretty confusing to me. It does strike me as odd that he has marked through these verses and made some notations. What seems strangest of all is the date here. October 3, 1863.”

  “That’s exactly what I think.”

  Jonathan looked over Grace’s head to the window, as though pondering something. Then he looked back at Grace. “Your father told me he joined up with General Braxton Bragg when he came through northern Alabama after leaving Shiloh. Your father would have been in the Battle of Chattanooga and Chickamauga in the fall. That’s when he wrote this date in the Bible.”

  “Then he wasn’t too far from Sand Mountain at that time,” Elizabeth interjected. “Jonathan, we moved down here to Pickens County from Sand Mountain, where we had lived for eleven years. While we lived there, we helped to build New Bethany Church at Pine Grove. Fred and I planted an apple tree in front of the church.”

  “You see,” Grace turned back to Jonathan. “I’m absolutely certain this is a code from my father. I don’t understand its full meaning, but I believe with all of my heart that my father left something at New Bethany Church for us. And Jonathan…” She paused and took a deep breath, gathering her courage to ask. “I know you need to get back to Kentucky, but I want to make a deal with you.”

  “A deal?” he asked, looking from Grace to her mother.

  She hesitated, wondering for a moment what kind of deal he thought she was going to propose to him. “Yes, a deal.” She plunged on. “Obviously I cannot go that distance by myself.” She hesitated, glancing at her mother. “Well, if I had no choice, I would probably strike out on my own, in spite of Mother’s protests.”

  “You know I wouldn’t allow you to do that,” Elizabeth spoke up nervously, her gaze darting from Grace to Jonathan.

  “You want me to go with you,” Jonathan said, sparing her the discomfort of having to ask.

  “Yes, and if Father has hidden a treasure there, I will share it with you for helping me. Whatever it is.”

  He shook his head. “I wouldn’t feel right doing that. Your father saved my life and—”

  “And you saved his life before that. Please, Jonathan, tell me you’ll go with me. Then after I satisfy myself as to whether or not there is something there, I promise not to ask anything more of you. In fact, we can part company at Sand Mountain, and you can go on to Kentucky.”

  He shook his head. “I can’t allow you to make the trip back alone. But Grace, before you get your hopes up, I have to tell you something. It’s quite likely that your father buried money, not knowing for sure that Confederate money would lose its value.”

  “That’s true,” Grace sighed. “But even if that’s what is buried there, I still will be glad to go and find out for myself.”

  Jonathan nodded. “I wish we could find someone else to go with you, Grace. Or go for you. I’ve been out of service for a month now. I really need to go on to Kentucky.”

  Elizabeth spoke up. “Jonathan, I wonder if you could send a wir
e to your family, letting them know that you are safe but that you’ve been detained.”

  Grace brightened. “Yes! That’s a good idea, Mother.” She looked at Jonathan. “The telegraph is back in operation in some areas. Surely along the way…”

  He raked his fingers through his dark hair as though wrestling with his decision. For a moment, Grace had a terrible feeling that he was going to say no, but then as he looked back at her mother, he slowly began to smile.

  “All right. I’ll wire my brother-in-law at the first place we come to.” He heaved a deep sigh. “Grace, we’ll go to this New Bethany Church and see if you’re right about this. If your father buried something there, we’ll do our best to find it.”

  “Maybe he buried gold,” Elizabeth said quietly.

  “But where would he get gold? That’s the only part that bothers me,” Grace said, trying to figure it all out. “I believe he did send us this message, and I think it all makes sense. But where would he get gold, or even enough money to consider a treasure, for that matter? He was fighting in a war.”

  “An officer gave me a horse,” Jonathan countered, looking from Grace to her mother. “Maybe someone paid your father for saving a life or just for helping. Or did he have something he could have sold?”

  Again, Grace looked to her mother for answers.

  “He had his gold watch, which wouldn’t be that valuable,” she said. “I honestly don’t know. But I believe this is a message from God.” Grace’s mother folded her hands together and smiled. “God began to answer our prayers when you came to us with news from Fred, Jonathan. And I believe those answers are just beginning.”

  She took a deep breath. “Grace, after thinking about it, I would like to ask Jonathan to go without you. That’s a long trip, and it would be too hard on you.”

  “No, Mother.” Grace frowned. “I want to go; I have to go.”

  “But Grace…” Elizabeth looked from Grace to Jonathan. “I hesitate to mention this, but we must consider how it will look to other people, the two of you traveling alone.”

  Jonathan looked at her mother, understanding her meaning, then back at Grace. “She’s right. I can make the trip alone.”

  “No.” Grace stood up. “Mother, this is no time to be worrying about what other people think. I’m going, and there’s no talking me out of it.”

  Jonathan grinned at her. “I can see there’s no point in trying. Mrs. Cunningham, I think I need to assure you that I will take very good care of Grace. I will not say or do anything to reflect badly on her. Or upon me,” he added.

  Grace felt her cheeks flush as she darted a glance at her mother. They were all talking about the same thing: if Jonathan could be trusted not to take advantage of her on this long trip.

  “I believe you,” Elizabeth said, “and I don’t want to offend you.”

  He smiled and touched her hand. “You are just being a good mother, and I certainly respect that. I promise you,” he said, looking into her eyes, “that I will behave as a gentleman at all times.”

  “That settles it then,” Grace said, wanting to get on with planning the trip. “Jonathan, while we’re making deals here, you must agree to accept half of whatever we find.”

  “Grace is right,” Elizabeth said. “You must accept half of whatever you two find there. We have always dealt fairly with people, and to ask anything more of you would be completely unfair.”

  Grace looked at Jonathan. She could see the inner battle he was waging. But then he began to shake his head slowly, and he put his hands out, palms up.

  “How can I refuse two charming, persuasive ladies? Grace, can you be ready to travel at daylight?”

  “I’m ready now,” she answered eagerly.

  He chuckled. “I’m sure you are, but we need to make some plans. I have some maps in my saddlebag, and I want to study the terrain. Also, we need to get the horses ready and…” His voice trailed. “I forgot you only have the gray horse.”

  “Molly will take me wherever I need to go,” Grace said, feeling totally confident in Molly’s ability.

  “Are you sure?” He was obviously not as confident.

  “Yes, I am. But if Molly quits on me, I can always ride behind you, can’t I?”

  “Well, yes. But—”

  “Or if we do find gold, I can buy another horse. You see, I have it all figured out.”

  “I believe you do. It’s settled then. We’ll go. Mrs. Cunningham, how long will it take us to reach the area where you lived?”

  Elizabeth pursed her lips. “We came in a wagon with extra horses, and it took us four days.”

  “So you camped three nights on the road,” Jonathan said, glancing worriedly at Grace.

  “Yes, but one night we stayed with some friends along the way who had been neighbors at Sand Mountain. And that reminds me, Grace, you know the Copeland family up around Jasper. You could stay one night at Ethel Copeland’s house. Ethel would be pleased to have you. She’s a very nice person.”

  Grace nodded. Ethel Copeland was a sister to Mrs. Douglas, and she and her husband had visited at Oak Grove during the summer and again at Christmas every year before the war began.

  “Yes, I think we would be welcome at Mrs. Copeland’s house. But I don’t know if I can find her place.”

  “Just stop somewhere in Jasper and ask. Everyone knows Ethel Copeland. Her husband worked at the bank until he died.”

  Jonathan was deep in thought as they discussed the Copelands, but at the first opportunity he spoke up again. “We need to think about the route we’ll take to get to Sand Mountain, Grace. I came down from Chattanooga through Huntsville, but it took three days of hard riding.”

  His blue eyes were filled with concern as he faced Grace. “Are you sure you’re up to that kind of travel?” He began to smile for she had already begun to roll her eyes. “On second thought, I guess you can do about anything you put your mind to, am I right?”

  “You are exactly right.” She grinned at him.

  “You’ll need to take food,” Elizabeth said, getting out of her chair to go into the kitchen to check the shelves in the pantry.

  Jonathan and Grace got up to follow.

  “I traveled with dried beans and salt pork in my saddlebag,” Jonathan said. “There’s still a small ration there. I keep a couple of cooking pans with me as well. Of course, we can stop at a store along the way and pick up rations as we need them.”

  “We have plenty of biscuits in the kitchen,” Grace said, recalling how much he had enjoyed her biscuits.

  “And I’ll make up some corn dodgers,” her mother called from inside the pantry.

  Jonathan was puzzled. “Corn dodgers?”

  “They’re fried cornmeal but very tasty,” Grace explained. “Not like that mixture you ate with the army.”

  “I used to prepare them for Fred when he was going to be out for a while.” Elizabeth’s head popped around the door of the pantry. “You remember how he loved my corn dodgers, Grace?”

  “Yes.” Grace was thinking about clothes. “What else do we need, Jonathan?”

  “I’ll make a list,” he said. “And I’ll check your saddle and harness to see if they need any patching. I’ll refill the canteen.” He paused, then looked toward the pantry where they could hear Elizabeth rummaging around. “What about your mother?” he asked, shaping the question with his lips so that Elizabeth wouldn’t hear.

  Grace turned and looked toward the pantry. Why hadn’t she thought of this sooner? She couldn’t go off and leave her mother by herself. Then she thought of the usual answer: their neighbors, the Douglases.

  “Jonathan, could you ride over to Mr. Douglas’s place and see if Reams and his wife could come stay with Mother? I’ll send a note saying…I’m not sure what I’ll say.”

  “Why don’t you let me think of something?” her mother suggested as she stepped out of the pantry. “In fact, don’t worry about it now. I’m sure Reams will be over sometime today, and I’ll ask him.”

&nbs
p; Grace nodded in agreement to the plan. “A note from you will be much more convincing, Mother. Mr. Douglas isn’t about to say no to you.”

  They laughed together, and Grace breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that finally God was beginning to answer their prayers.

  Chapter 8

  They left at first light the next morning. True to his word, Jonathan had both horses ready for travel, and he had stocked saddlebags with rations and drawn out a map for them to follow.

  Grace was thankful they were traveling north and would not have to return to Whites Creek. For now, she wanted to put as much distance as possible between them and Sonny.

  They set off at a brisk pace and had ridden for over an hour in silence. Grace had promised herself not to be a chatterbox or worry Jonathan unnecessarily. They had agreed to ride faster the first few hours while the horses were fresh, so conversation was scarce as they cantered their horses up the main road.

  Only once did Grace worry about their safety. They had rounded a curve and come face-to-face with a man riding toward them on a sway-backed mule. He was the worst looking man Grace had ever seen. Beneath a cap of animal fur, his skin was blackened from smoke; the smell of fire was strong upon him. His clothes were filthy and ragged, and there was a strange glint in his hard eyes. Once they were close to him, he looked away as though avoiding their open stares.

  After he was well behind them, Jonathan turned to Grace. “I’ve seen several men like that along the way. Bummers, they’re called. They’re thieves who roam the country, stealing, killing. You see now why I’m concerned for you and your mother.”

  Grace glanced back over her shoulder as the old mule and the strange man disappeared around the curve. “I think I’m better off not knowing about people like that,” she said, wishing that she had never seen the man whose image was sure to haunt her memory, particularly in the middle of the night when she jumped at the slightest sound. “I hope Mother is all right,” she said. She had hated to leave her mother for whom she felt so responsible.